Will strongly oppose FDI in retail: BJP

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Last Updated: Wed, Nov 14, 2012 09:25 hrs

India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday said it will oppose the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government's decision to allow Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail during the upcoming winter session of the Parliament.

"The BJP will strongly oppose the FDI in retail policy in the upcoming session of Parliament," BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters.

"The strategy for Opposition will also be coordinated within the NDA(National Democratic Alliance) and also with other parties opposed to FDI," he said.

Attacking the Congress on the land deal between party supremo Sonia Gandhi´s son-in-law Robert Vadra and realty firm DLF, Prasad said: "The BJP will like to ask straight question to the Congress and the Prime Minister. Why is Robert Vadra not being probed? There is new evidence yesterday of how land was given in Haryana and Rajasthan. The entire Congress party is silent."

Slamming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on coal scam, he said: "What was Dr Manmohan Singh´s role in coal block allocations? Why is he not being probed?"

Pertinently, Indian Parliament could not function the entire monsoon session over the demand of the Prime Minister´s resignation and cancellation of licences of coal blocks and an independent probe into the coal scam.

The UPA government is likely to face tough moments during the winter session with former key alliance partner Trinamool Congress (TMC) likely to move a no-confidence motion against it.

The relationship between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee´s TMC and the UPA touched its lowest point last month when it withdrew support to the latter over its recent economic reforms, including FDI in multi-brand retail, hike in diesel price and cap on subsidy in LPG cylinders.

TMC with 19 MPs was UPA´s second biggest constituent and the biggest ally of the Congress party which spearheads the government.

Pertinently, the UPA has bailed itself out with the support of Mulayam Singh Yadav´s Samajwadi Party (SP) that is in power in India´s largest state Uttar Pradesh and also the silent backing of the latter´s main opposition Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) of previous UP chief minister Mayawati.